Wednesday, December 21, 2011

Citrus Asparagus with Sweet Red Peppers and Balsamic Glaze

I love asparagus but was looking for something a little different than my go-to recipe: Roasted Asparagus with Lemon and Sea Salt. We were in the mountains this weekend praying for snow when I mashed together a few recipes I found on the internet. I came up with this version which is quite sweet from the Balsamic Glaze with a kick of citrus from the orange zest. It's definitely your not-so-ordinary vegetable side dish! Try it served with the Classic Chicken Piccata.

First, rinse your asparagus, cut off the bottom 2-3 inches (the tough part) and put in a rimmed baking pan. Drizzle with 2 Tbsp olive oil, salt and pepper. Now is a good time to preheat the oven to 425 degrees.

Next, using a small grater or zester (microplane), zest the orange and dice the red pepper. Make sure to remove the seeds and inside white ribs from the pepper.

Sprinkle the red peppers and zest over the asparagus.

Roast in the oven for 15-20 minutes depending on the thickness of the asparagus. I found this new (at least to me) Balsamic Glaze in the grocery store next to the Balsamic Vinegar. It seems to just be a thick Balsamic reduction which you can do at home by just gently boiling the vinegar in a small saucepan over the stove until thick and sweet. Once the asparagus is done, drizzle with the glaze and serve!

This side dish goes with a more savory or salty main dish which balances out the sweetness of the glazed asparagus. Give it a shot if you're looking for something new and different in your veggie repertoire!

1 comment:

Yum! I was planning to make something very similar to this tonight! Except instead of the bell peppers, using halved baby heirlooms and adding some goat cheese crumbles to roast with the spears. Keep up the yummy work, hope all is well!